Glaze or Gloss: Believe Helps You Shine

The exhausting holidays are behind us. You are back to your stress-filled job. Even winter—with its cold winds and overheated rooms--has finally made an appearance and your hair shows all the changes. It may be getting dry and brittle, but most of all, it is getting dull. What to do to bring out the shine? Try a gloss or a glaze.

There is a difference between the two (though some companies use the terms interchangeably on their products). A gloss sinks into your hair's cuticle and adds shine and can add color. (Glosses can also help correct a bad highlighting job). A gloss is more permanent than a glaze since it absorbs into the cuticle of the hair shaft, lasting two-four weeks.

A glaze coats the top of your hair –the shaft itself—with shine (like glazing a donut) and is semi-permanent, lasting about two weeks.

If you want to put a shine on your hair, a clear glaze will do the trick. But if you want to jazz up your color or highlights, go for a gloss.

We offer both at Believe and they are color products we “believe” in like Chromastics.

First we wash your hair with a Chromastics Clarifying Shampoo to prepare the hair and give you a heavenly scalp massage to help release your natural oils and rehydrate your hair (and refresh your soul). After the glaze is shampooed out, a moisturizing conditioner like Agadir Moisture Masque will be applied, left to sink into your hair's cuticle and then rinsed well.

Then it is time to apply the gloss or glaze, both of which are applied just like conditioner, from scalp to ends and left to work its magic for 10-20 minutes (Some products are even heat-activated) and then rinsed out.

Both glazes and glosses help colored hair retain its vibrant color and can even be used as subtle highlights in dark hair, making your hair “shimmer” underneath lights. If you have light-brown (or mousey brown) hair, a red glaze can bring about fabulous results. The glaze will not only bring depth and highlights to your hair, but your hair will shine copper under lights or in the sunlight.

The use of color-protecting shampoos and conditioner like Semi Di Lino Color Protection at home will make the effects of the glaze last longer. These products are 20% of this week at Believe.

Glazes are FREE this week at Believe when you book an appointment to get Single Process Highlights and a Cut, so make an appointment and come in to see how adding shine to your hair can help add a little spring to your step during the dreary winter months.

Shine On!

You may be forgiven if your summer hair gets a little drab, dull and worn out from the sun and salt, but now that autumn is upon us, you've got no excuse for not having hair so shiny it competes with all those holiday lights already popping up everywhere.

First a little lesson in what makes hair shiny. When the cuticle of the hair shaft lies nice and flat, it provides an even surface to reflect light. This smooth outer layer also repels the moisture that causes frizz—a real shine inhibitor.

And here's something you may not have known: Using only moisturizing shampoos and conditioners can actually interfere with the shine of your hair by building up dulling residue on the shaft.

What do to? About once a week, try an acidic finishing rinse after you wash your hair. The acids tighten up that outer layer of cuticle, letting more light bounce off that newly-smooth cuticle, making your hair even more lustrous. You can even whip up a simple acid wash right in your own kitchen. Try one of these rinses:

• Beer: After shampooing hair and washing out the suds, pour a bottle of beer into your hair and massage it in for a few minutes. Then rinse well with cold water. This beer rinse even helps give your hair body.
• Lemon Juice: After shampooing and rinsing as usual, mix the juice of a lemon with 1½ cups of water and pour through hair, before rinsing with cold water. Prepare for shine galore!
• Apples Cider Vinegar: Combine the juice of a ½ lemon (careful—it might lighten your hair a little) with 2 Tbs of the vinegar and 1 cup of water. Massage into hair and scalp and rinse with cool water to correct hair's pH and bump up the shine.

Now that you've gotten the gotten the gunk out, don't forget to put some good stuff in. Come into Believe every month for a deep conditioning treatment to beat winter stress and, once a week at home, apply a deep conditioner or heavy duty mask formulated to boost shine (while protecting the outer layer of hair). MOISTURE MASK BY AGADIR WITH MORROCAN OIL and AESTELANCE MUD MASK and IDEN TREATMENT and all are carried at Believe.

Every two months or so you may want to actually feed your hair by mashing one ripe avocado (use the rest for fresh guacamole--yum!) and mixing it with 1 Tbsp. olive oil and 1 tsp. baking powder. Work the mixture through hair. Leave on for 15 minutes, and wash out really well. It will really help you ramp up the shine.

To get a real mirror-like finish (and help that cuticle lay even flatter) use some of the great shine-enhancing products we carry at Believe like AESTELANCE LUSTRE.

The trick to these is to avoid putting the product on the roots (don't go any closer than 1½ inches from the roots) and always apply these products to dry hair. Generally speaking, pomades and waxes are good for thin hair and oils and serums work better on thick or coarse hair—but stop by Believe and we will give you a free consultation about which shine enhancer will work best for you.

Also, when drying hair, aim your blow dryer down the hair shaft, which smooths the cuticle (otherwise air pushes the cuticle up and along comes frizz.) Once your hair is almost dry, hit the cool button to seal the hair cuticle, which will help keep your hair smooth and silky.

The holidays are right around the corner and it is the season to shine! Make sure your hair does it's “part”(get it?)

And be sure to stop by to see us at Believe before any of those big holiday parties. We'll make you a shining star!